101 SECRETS

A non-linear, live-action anime about a Buddhist hobo trapped inside a video game where his only chance to win is by reversing his karma. Yet, the harder he tries to be a hero, the darker his path becomes. Stumbling between a strip club, an asylum, and prison -- the clumsy pilgrimage only leads him further away from sanity and Enlightenment. But with the guidance of a monk inside a dumpster and a demon inside his head, the Buddhist hobo learns to cheat his way to the last level! -JMG

AEROBICS – A LOVE STORY

Maria is mentally challenged and lives with her overprotective sister Helen. Maria falls in love with a man, Janne. The result is a marvelous, offbeat story about forbidden love by award-winning Director Anders Rune. This award winning film was shot in the suburbs of Stockholm, Sweden. -JMG

ALL CONTAINED IN VOID

This intriguing and thought provoking experimental documentary crawls over, under and inside the leftover 'dead zones' of the California road and freeway system, finding an eclectic mix of people who inhabit, explore, and re-purpose these liminal spaces, sometimes uncovering a world to call their own. Urban planners, artists and engineers reflect on the sociological considerations about the built environment, including interviews with KALW'S Roman Mars (host of the popular architecture and design podcast "99 Percent Invisible") and John Law (co-founder of Burning Man and the Cacophony Society). -CM

THE APOSTLE (O APOSTOLO)

A convict escapes from jail and travels to a remote village to recover loot that was hidden years earlier. He gets more than he bargained for when he runs into sinister elderly people and spirits. Featuring the voices of Geraldine Chaplin, Paul Naschy (Spanish horror film star), Carlos Blanco (Almodóvar’s Volver), and Xosé Manuel Olveira 'Pico' (The Sea Inside). -JMG

BEYOND CLUELESS

Following 1995's Clueless, Hollywood made hundreds of movies exploring the teenage psyche. Most were set in the drama-rich landscape of high school, complete with jocks, cheerleaders, freaks, geeks, and countless sub cliques in between. Narrated by cult teen star Fairuza Balk, this stylish film takes us into the soul of the teen movie, as seen through the eyes of 200 modern coming-of-age classics, exploring themes of alienation, loss of self, and scouring the often amusing myriad of emotional tempests that dominate the teenage years. -CM

12th BIG LEBOWSKI PARTY

Way out West there was this fella... fella I wanna tell you about. Fella by the name of Jeff Lebowski. At least that was the handle his loving parents gave him, but he never had much use for it himself. Mr. Lebowski, he called himself “The Dude.”

This year's party takes place at the newly reopened Grand Theater on Mission Street and features a costume contest, beach bonfire trampoline and volleyball action, mini bowling, some nihilists, and white russians while the Coen Brothers' classic plays all night in the screening room.

BLACK MOUNTAIN SIDE

In the tradition of other snowbound shockers like The Thing and The Shining, Black Mountain Side is a calculating and claustrophobic work that casts a spell of quiet madness over its characters. A team of researchers uncovers a stone structure engraved with indecipherable archaic writing. Soon a violent illness starts to work its way through the crew. Beautifully shot against British Columbia's ominous Monashee Mountains, Szostakiwsky's sharp script is harrowing in its depiction of the emotional collapse of these increasingly isolated men of science who are determined to explain the unexplainable or die trying. (Paul Corupe) – Programmed by Kier-la Janisse

CHOCOLATE STRAWBERRY VANILLA

Stuart Simpson’s Chocolate Strawberry Vanilla is a strange character study, flaunting wicked humor and mounting unease. Warren (Glenn Maynard) is an ice cream man; he lives alone with his cat and tunes in daily to his favorite soap opera. However, after an awful accident, Warren’s life begins to spiral out of control. He becomes dangerously obsessed with his favorite soap star, a local drug dealer starts muscling in on his patch, and his sanity begins to disintegrate alarmingly. (Nerdly) – Programmed by Kier-la Janisse

THE CULT OF JT LEROY

JT LeRoy was a teen prostitute, addicted to heroin and infected with HIV, when a therapist encouraged him to write his life story. Buoyed by a cadre of celebrities, he published three critically acclaimed books, including Sarah and The Heart is Deceitful Above All Things. But as his fame skyrocketed, the shocking truth emerged: JT was not what he seemed. What followed was a downfall as bewildering as it was tragic. Drawn into LeRoy’s inner circle before the truth came to light, filmmaker Marjorie Sturm was misled like many others. Through intimate interviews with many close to the tarnished figure, Sturm attempts to untangle what really happened, and in the process explores how his deception called into question not only the value of LeRoy’s writing absent authenticity, but our culture’s complicity with the author’s seductive cult of personality. ?Chris Metzler

DARKNESS ON THE EDGE OF TOWN

A young woman is found dead, stabbed to death in a public restroom. The police and the town are indifferent to this shocking act, but her estranged younger sister Cleo (who happens to be a talented sharpshooter) vows to avenge the killing by any means necessary. Trouble is, the killer is Cleo’s best (and only) friend. The audience knows this; Cleo does not. Straight from it’s U.S. premiere at Slamdance, this sparse and shocking (in every way) Irish thriller is the real deal: a mesmerizing shocker from start to finish. - Mike Keegan

EAST SIDE SUSHI

Single mother Juana Martinez has only ever worked at her family’s sidewalk cart for the sole purpose of feeding her family, until she finds a job in the kitchen of a neighborhood sushi restaurant. The new atmosphere reignites her passion for food and life and makes her hungry to get mixed up in the flavors of this new world. Despite the objections of her family, Juana decides to pursue her dream of becoming an expert sushi chef--- to go where her heart tells her, not where she is expected to be. Faced with the obstacle of being the wrong gender and race for her chosen profession, Juana must surpass the skeptics to succeed where no one like her ever has. - Chris Metzler

FILM SCHOOL GEMS

Film School Shorts is KQED's national showcase of the best short fiction films from across the country that feature everything from quirky comedies to slice-of-life dramas to hard-hitting thrillers from major institutions like NYU, Columbia University and CalArts that have wowed audiences at Cannes, Sundance, Toronto, Telluride and SXSW. The short films included here are highlights from the show's upcoming Season 3 and represent a wide-range of styles and content and introduce vibrant, young filmmakers that are soon to make an impact in the industry. - CM - Presented by KQED's Film School Shorts

FLASH GORDON

(21up event) With a remake currently in the works by Twentieth Century Fox, a presentation of the cheesiest of all cheesy sci-fi flicks seems to be in order. Timothy Dalton, Max von Sydow, and Sam Jones are the stars, with a sound track by Queen. Flash Gordon, local football hero, finds himself on the planet Mongo battling Emperor Ming the Merciless to save the planet Earth from destruction. With cat-suited temptresses, bad guys who are into S&M, horny robots, and phallic space ships, what we have here is high camp in PVC hot pants. - Jeff Ross

FOR THE PLASMA

There’s a house in the woods in Maine, and there are security cameras in those woods. The cameras are ostensibly there to watch for forest fires, but the fact of the matter is, if you scrutinize the images hard enough – you can predict the stock market. There are two women in charge of watching the cameras, and one of them has a secret. For The Plasma is lo-fi sci-fi by way of cough syrup-paced screwball comedy. -MK

FOR YOUR HEIGHT ONLY

The ultimate Filipino exploitation B-film! Starring Weng Weng, who is the subject of the new documentary The Search for Weng Weng -- also playing at IndieFest! Mr. Giant has kidnapped the brilliant Dr. Van Kohler and is planning to use the Doctor's invention (the N-bomb) to hold the world hostage. The only one who can foil Mr. Giant's evil scheme is Agent 00, a 2-foot-9-inch Filipino martial arts master. He is an expert marksman, top-class romancer and all-around superspy. Can Agent 00 rescue Dr. Kohler before it's too late? -JMG

FREE

Academy Award-nominated filmmaker David Collier and co-director Suzanne LaFetra have crafted a stirring, up-close documentary that follows a group of Oakland teens who find personal liberation and mutual support through dance. These dynamic young people face the very real challenges of poverty, alienation, HIV, sexual abuse, and gang violence but are dedicated to telling the truth--- even if it hurts. Because the truth will, to some degree, set them free. FREE captures their struggles as they turn the courage, determination, and stamina required in their daily lives into a contagious joy. - Chris Metzler

HITS

Hits is the first feature film written and directed by comedy legend David Cross (Mr. Show with Bob and David, Arrested Development). When a video of a humble municipal worker’s city council rant goes viral, a small town in upstate New York becomes an incubator for widespread delusions of grandeur. Soon, opportunistic news crews, clueless urban bohemians, and downwardly mobile hillbillies swarm this once idyllic hamlet, competing head-to-head for a shot at the real American dream: monetized web content. This trenchant satire features a killer’s row of comic actors, including Matt Walsh, James Adomian, Wyatt Cenac, and Michael Cera. ?Mike Keegan

Stick around after the film for our Opening Night Party featuring Conspiracy of Beards (Leonard Cohen tribute choir) and The Jerk Church Tabernacle Choir.

I AM A KNIFE WITH LEGS

First his girlfriend dies in a suicide bombing. Then a fatwa is issued against him. And now international Europop star Bené’s eclair is weird. Seven years and hundreds of dollars in the making, I Am a Knife With Legs is an underground cinema wonder. Utilizing random scribbled animation, multiple Adobe After Effects freeware plug-ins and, most importantly, comedic timing of proportions rivaling Bené’s songwriting abilities, it lacks anything resembling a dull moment?a rare occurrence when a film is this intentionally batshit weird. (Fantastic Fest) – Programmed by Kier-la Janisse